Bulk Serial Number scanning is currently in beta. Your Sitemark contact has to enable it for your company, and the site needs to be set up for scanning — see Before You Go to Site.
Overview
Field Link lets you scan serial number barcodes on solar panels directly in the field. The app works offline, so you can keep scanning with no cellular or WiFi coverage at the site, and your scans upload automatically once you’re back online.
Before You Go to Site
1. Install Field Link
Download Field Link from the Google Play Store or the App Store and install it on your device.
2. Log In
Open Field Link and log in with your Sitemark account credentials. You need to be online for this step.
3. Check Your Access
Scan mode needs three things on your account. An admin sets these in the Sitemark web app under Settings → Users → (your user) → Permissions:
Can view sites and their info (Sites) — without it Field Link shows “You don’t have access to the Field Link app”
Can edit components (Components) — without it the scanner opens and the map looks normal, but no serial number is ever saved
Access to the site itself — either Can access all sites in the portfolio, or the site ticked on the user’s Site access tab
Your Sitemark contact also enables Scan Mode for your company, confirms the site has a Field Link licence, and confirms that panels are linked to their tables and rows. If Scan Mode isn’t enabled yet, “Scan serial numbers” appears greyed out in the toolbox menu with a “Coming soon” tooltip. If the panel-to-table link is missing, scan mode opens with nothing to scan.
4. Download the Site for Offline Use
This step is critical if there is no internet connection at the site — you must download the site data before leaving.
From the home screen, tap your site to open it
Tap the download icon in the header
The layer picker groups everything under Site Design Files, Tickets and Components, and everything is already selected. Scan mode needs two layers from the Components group: the solar panel layer and the layer of structures the panels sit on. Exact names vary per site — usually Solar Panels plus Tables or Structures. If the site groups its tables into rows, keep that layer too. Leaving the rest selected is fine; unticking them just makes the download smaller and faster.
Rows are optional. On a site that has them you tap a whole row and scan every table in it as one continuous route; without rows you tap a single table, scan it, then pick the next one. Scanning works the same either way — rows just give you a longer route per tap. If the site does have rows and you untick that layer, scan mode will have nothing to scan.
Wait for the download to complete
The site is now available offline
At the Site: Scanning Serial Numbers
Starting a Scan Session
Open the site map by tapping on your downloaded site
Tap the toolbox icon on the map
Select “Scan serial numbers” from the menu
The map switches to an overview of the site’s rows (or tables, if rows aren’t set up). Each one is shaded by progress:
Red: nothing scanned yet
Orange: partly scanned
Green: every panel scanned
Blue: progress not known yet
These colours come from the server, so they need an internet connection. Offline they show the last state fetched while online, or stay blue if never fetched.
Tap the row you want to work on — tap the end you’re standing at, and the route starts from the nearest panel
Scanning Panels
Once you start scanning:
The screen splits: map on one side, the scan panel on the other — the paired Bluetooth scanner’s input field by default, or the live camera view if you switch Scanner input to Camera
Point your scanner at the barcode on the panel. The scan panel header shows which panel you’re on, its serial number once read, and your progress through the route (scanned / total)
When the serial number is read, you’ll hear a confirmation sound and the app automatically moves to the next panel
The map highlights:
Green: panels that already have a serial number — either scanned this session, or scanned earlier / imported
Orange: the panel to scan now
Red, numbered: the next three panels, in walking order
Blue: the rest of the route ahead, joined by the orange route line
As you work:
Panels that already have a serial number are skipped automatically. They stay visible in green and count toward your scanned / total, and the route jumps over them — so on a row someone has partly done, you only fill the gaps.
Tap any panel on the map to make it the current one — use this to go back to a panel you skipped, or to re-anchor the route
Tap another row or table on the map to switch the session to it without going back to the overview. The route restarts from the panel nearest where you tapped.
Skip panel moves past a panel you can’t scan. The route does not come back to it — tap it on the map when you want to scan it.
If a scan can’t be saved you’ll see “Scan not recorded — scan this panel again” — rescan that panel
Scanner and Camera Input
Scanner (the default) reads a paired Bluetooth barcode scanner. The input field re-arms itself after you tap elsewhere in the app, so sequential scanning keeps working — you never need to tap back into it.
Camera uses the device camera and reads Code 128, Code 39, Code 93, Data Matrix, EAN-8, EAN-13, UPC-A, UPC-E and QR codes.
Scan Settings
Tap the settings icon during scanning to open Scan settings:
Route grouping: Row first or Column first
Primary direction and Secondary direction: flip the walking direction if you’re approaching from the other end
Auto-orient (secondary direction): Auto lets the app work out the secondary direction from where you tapped; Manual keeps your choice
Scanner input: Scanner (the default) for a paired Bluetooth barcode scanner, or Camera to scan with the device camera
Sound: On or Off
Handling Duplicates
If you scan a serial number that’s already assigned to another panel, a banner appears — “Already scanned: {serial} (on panel {id})” — with three options:
Retry: dismiss the banner and scan the same panel again (use this when you caught a neighbouring label by mistake)
Override: assign the serial number to the current panel anyway
Skip: move to the next panel without recording it. As with Skip panel, the route won’t return to this panel on its own.
Offline, the check runs against the data on your device, so a duplicate created by a colleague the same day may not be flagged until you sync.
Undo a Scan
Made a mistake? You have 3 seconds to tap Undo after each scan.
Leaving Scan Mode
The ← button in the header steps back one level: scanning → row overview → normal map. Tap it twice to leave scan mode completely. Scans already made are kept, and saved locally when you’re working offline.
After Scanning: Syncing Your Data
Field Link syncs your scans automatically as soon as it has an internet connection.
Syncing runs in the background wherever you are in the app — you don’t have to be on any particular screen. The site list header is where you can check on it: it reads “Synchronising unsaved changes.”, “Checking for unsaved changes.”, or “No unsaved changes.” once everything has reached the server.
Important: do not uninstall the app or log out until it says No unsaved changes.
Multi-Day Scanning Sessions
End of Each Day
When you finish for the day, return to an area with internet
Field Link syncs on its own. To confirm it has finished, open the site list and check the header reads No unsaved changes
Your work is now saved on the server
Start of Next Day
Re-download the site before heading back to the field — this ensures you have the latest data, including any panels scanned by others
Go to the site list and tap the download icon again
Wait for the download to complete
Troubleshooting
What you see | What it means |
Scan serial numbers is greyed out, tooltip says Coming soon | Scan Mode isn’t enabled for your company yet — contact your Sitemark contact |
“Nothing to scan here yet.” (online) | The site has no structures layer, or panels aren’t linked to their tables — contact your Sitemark contact |
“Nothing to scan here yet. Make sure the site is downloaded for offline use.” (offline) | The site isn’t downloaded, or its structures / rows layer was left out of the download |
“Couldn’t load the rows.” / “Couldn’t load the structures.” | The row overview failed to load — tap Try again, or reconnect and retry |
“No scannable panels found here. Go back and pick another row.” | That row or table has no solar panels linked to it |
“Couldn’t load this row’s panels. Make sure the site is downloaded for offline use.” | The row’s data isn’t on the device — re-download the site including the structures and rows layers |
The scanner opens, but no serial numbers are saved | Your account is missing Can edit components |
A row stays blue in the overview | Progress colours need an internet connection; they refresh when you reconnect |
A panel you skipped never comes back | Skipping is permanent for the session — tap the panel on the map to return to it |
A colleague’s work from yesterday isn’t visible | Re-download the site |